INTRODUCTION
During and after
the Revolutionary War, European scholars noted that Americans
were not
only highly literate, but very knowledgeable about the "law"
as well. Part
of the reason for the legal literacy of those Americans is
attributable
to that magnificent work, Sir William
Blackstone's Commentaries on the
Laws of England, which was a best seller in the
colonies. But the circumstances
of Americans have changed over the last 200 years and today
too many lack
a working knowledge of the "law," and especially of "freedom
law."
Current legal
systems of justice across the world reflect not only the
nature of the
government in power, but also the people who live under and
within such
systems. For example, because of the dreadful governmental
systems which
rule in communist countries, draconian laws are used to govern
and control
the people. The societies controlled by these governments are
composed
of people lacking many essential social traits, first among
which is knowledge
essential to oppose tyranny, and secondly the ability to
control government.
When the people lose their character and ability to resist and
oppose abusive
government, those types of governments arise and they reign
until the people
again acquire the love for freedom and desire to achieve it.
The Israelites
could not have been subjected to slavery by Babylon and Egypt
if they had
been freedom and liberty loving people.
The current legal
system we have
in America is the product of inherited legal systems as
modified by the
history of this country. Before our separation from England,
the common
law system had erected a form of social justice based upon the
ancient
customs of those peoples who sought and won their freedom from
tyrannical
English kings. The common law system controlled the estates
and tenures
of real property, crimes, civil wrongs, contracts and a wide
variety of
other legal matters. Because the common law worked so well and
we were
familiar with it, we adopted those fields of law after we
achieved independence.
However, we did not adopt the tyrannical form of government
which King
George found so pleasing, monarchy, an important feature of
the common
law.
Since the
establishment of this country,
the original and newly admitted states have adopted
constitutional forms
of government. While lots of these constitutions have
similarities, there
are differences. However all, including the federal
government, have legislative
assemblies which enact statutes, and those statutes have grown
to an immense
size. Further, we have created governmental agencies that
publish rules
and regulations which implement these statutes. Finally,
courts sit every
day adjudging criminal and civil cases and the published
decisions of these
courts constitute "stare decisis," which is a very important
part of the
"law." In short, the "law" we have in this country is composed
of the many
constitutions, statutes, agency regulations and court
decisions that may
be found in any well stocked law library. Consequently, the
"law" has become
very complicated.
Many today observe
that our governments
wish to enslave and subject us to tyranny. However, it must
also be observed
that the character of Americans is far different from that of
the people
who established this country and many today lack the ability
to resist abusive
government, a trait in common with the ordinary citizens
living under tyranny.
Obviously by your visit to this web site, you are not among
that class.
The purpose of this site is to assist those who seek legal
tools for the
battle to restore liberty and freedom to this country.
Like Sam Irvin, I
am nothing but
a country lawyer who lives in Huntsville, Alabama, a southern
town on the southern edges of the Appalachian Mountains.
Socially, I find
the company of "bubbas" more enjoyable and preferable than
that of socialites.
My one forte' is hard work and my burning desire is to locate
and catalog
the "freedom law" which Americans need to restore our
liberties.
The briefs and
other legal materials
which you find here are those which cover subjects I believe
are of interest
to the concerned American. In reference to the "federal
jurisdiction" materials,
I first read tons of cases dealing with the issue and then
compiled summaries
of them; from that, I composed the brief utilizing only a
small number
of the researched cases. The money issue is one of my
favorites, and I
drafted the brief that appears here back in the early '80s.
The brief regarding
Fifth Amendment protection for personal financial records has
its origins
back in the early '80s and over time whenever I ran across a
case which
should be included, I simply inserted the cite. Such a
procedure often
results in a work which needs substantial "clean-up" to make
it worthy
of reading. The remaining briefs cover several different
topics; I have
also thrown in some of my working files which are nothing more
than summaries
of cases on a particular point of law. All of this material
was originally
created only for my own use and hence they are written in
ordinary, everyday,
working lawyer language, with no thought being given at the
time of drafting
that anybody would ever be reading them other than myself. I
recognize
that they need to be rewritten for public consumption, but I
lack the time.
Do not expect novels with intriguing plots.
I hope that this
material is helpful
to you and increases your knowledge and understanding of the
law.
Lowell H.
"Larry" Becraft,
Jr.
Huntsville, Alabama
256-533-2535
I also must take a moment to mention
something that is very troubling. There is no doubt that
America is sliding
down the slippery slopes to tyranny, but I also observe that
the response
of the people who desire to correct this situation is
inadequate to oppose
and reverse this potential ruin. All too often, I encounter
those who are
fighting against the federal income tax. Frequently, the story
of these
people is a repetitive, broken record, they all having
followed the same
easy routine. They read some books and attend a few meetings
where taxes
are discussed; they reach conclusions that they are not
required to file
tax returns and they stop doing so. In their mind, they have
discovered
the truth about this tax and consequently the battle is over
and they need
do nothing. These people utterly fail to realize that a battle
is being
raged over this precise issue and we certainly have not won
yet. They also
dislike getting their hands dirty with doing such things as
supporting
a local patriot organization. These people abhor associating
with that
great unwashed mass of commoners who think we must actually do
something
to save our country. Please take me at my word when I state
that there
are literally millions who think this way and yet call
themselves "patriots."
These folks
sit back and enjoy
life just knowing that they cannot be touched or bothered by
the IRS. But
when the IRS acts, they suddenly realize that their personal
beliefs or
even letters will not stop the IRS; when this happens, they
scurry about
looking for another "silver bullet." These people are
completely unprepared
for law enforcement, either civil or criminal; in short, they
are overwhelmed
by law enforcement. This lack of preparation for predictable
and anticipated
contingencies is a major problem for the freedom movement.
But further,
many of the beliefs
held dear by these people have already been litigated by the
pro se movement
and lost. I have many calls where people tell me with an
arrogant tone
in their voice that "wages are not income" and they even have
Supreme Court
or even federal appellate court decisions which so state. I
have looked
for years and never found the decisions they mention, which
incidentally
they never send me when requested. When I mention the numerous
cases where
this issue has been lost (see the file, "Favorite Patriot
Issues"),
they act in disbelief. These people suddenly realize that
their personal
opinion is not reflected in the "law."
I could
write a book about
what we need to do but lack the time. However, I will observe
that what
is greatly needed in this movement is a counterpart to the
ACLU, a patriot
ACLU of whatever name. With this mechanism, when somebody with
a good issue
needs defending, a team can be sent in with the objective of
winning. Imagine
what we could do if we turned Dr. Edwin Vieira, the foremost
authority
on the money issue, loose to take on this extremely important
issue. Imagine
what we could accomplish if we built the correct cases which
get tried
by the best on our side.
If we are to win,
the above suggestion
is perhaps the only method we have left.
